CN1183629C - Electromechanical connecting device - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to an electromechanical connecting device that is provided with a current or data supply element that comprises commutator magnets or magnetic switches and contacts that are connected to current- or pulse-supplying sources via current-carrying contacts, said current- or pulse-supplying sources being located in a housing. The electromechanical connecting device further comprises a consumer access or data readout device that is located in a housing and that is electrically connected to a consumer or user. The consumer access or data readout device is provided with tripping magnets or magnetic tripping elements and with switching contact elements. When the contacts of the current or data supply element are connected to the consumer access or data readout device, a connection via the contacts is established. These contacts are configured as flat contacts with surface contact. At least the contacts of one of the devices are located in an at least partially flexible wall of the pertaining housing.

Description

Electromechanical connection device

Technical field

The present invention relates to an electromechanical connection device defined in detail in the preamble of technical solution 1.

Background technique

Such devices are described in document EP 0 573 471. The electrical connection here is not through a socket as a power supply device or a current connection device and a plug as a user connection device, but a switch device and a trigger device to switch on the current, and in these two devices set The contact element is constructed as a flat contact with surface contact. This measure significantly simplifies the electrical connection of the power source to the consumer and also makes it safer. In the case of connection of higher volts and/or amperage, for example 110 volts or 220 volts, it is only possible for the contact element to supply current through the working slider in the switching device if the trigger device is connected, which It has high safety to prevent misoperation and electrical accidents.

But in the case of low-voltage connections, surface contact also offers advantages in terms of circuit simplification, ease of cleaning and safe contact connections. A low-voltage connection is described in document DE 296 10 996.7, by means of which devices are operated, for example, with low voltages up to 24 volts or with pulsed and/or controlled voltages.

A perfect surface contact can be achieved with two contact elements or optionally with three contact elements. However, this is more difficult when the contact is established by means of several contact elements, since in this case a perfect and reliable mutual contact of the corresponding cooperating contact elements in a surface contact cannot be guaranteed.

Although DE 296 10 996.7 recommends that the contact elements be equipped with pretensioned springs, this type of connection becomes rather expensive and susceptible to interference in the case of multi-pole contact connections.

It is therefore the object of the present invention to improve an electromechanical connection device of the above-mentioned type, in such a way that a multi-pole contact connection can be produced in a simple and reliable manner.

Contents of the invention

According to the invention, this object is achieved by the features described in the characterizing part of claim 1 .

By arranging the contact elements of at least one of the two devices, namely the above-mentioned power supply device or data supply device and the user connection device or data access device, in an at least partially elastic wall, when the two devices are connected to each other Due to the magnetic force, it is possible to align the contact element with the respective other device and thereby create a desired surface contact connection.

The electromechanical connection device of the present invention can be used in various ways in various technical fields. A preferred field of use is, for example, the low-voltage range for low-voltage power transmission with low volts (for example below 24 volts) for generating control voltages, operating pulses or for data transmission.

For the sake of simplicity, only a power supply device and a customer connection device are described separately below, although of course the voltage or pulse transmission-related devices for data transmission are also generally referred to. Likewise, audio signals can of course also be transmitted in this way.

In order to strengthen the contact connection, for example to generate high contact forces, the contact elements of the two devices can also be arranged, if necessary, in an elastic wall, for example in a plastic film.

The contact elements can be arranged solely as magnetic elements in the corresponding housing or the contact elements can also be magnetic elements at the same time. In the latter case, a very space-saving connecting device is obtained.

In simple cases, that is to say when the contact elements or contact element fits do not require exact positioning, it is sufficient that one of the two interacting elements is formed as an electromagnet and the other as a magnetic element during contacting.

If the different contact elements require a precise fit with each other, the cooperating magnetic operating elements of the power supply device and the customer connection device must be used as magnetic elements with opposite polarity, so that a precisely fitted circuit connection can be produced.

In another configuration of the present invention, each magnetic element itself has mutually differently polarized magnetic particles, and this polarized magnetic particle cooperates with the oppositely polarized magnetic particles of the magnetic element of another device. , so that the above-mentioned connection can be further improved in terms of safe wiring and avoidance of wrong wiring. The principle of this design solution is described in document DE 195 12 334 C1. One of the main advantages of this solution is that it is impossible to make a circuit connection with a counter-magnet with an incongruent code, especially when the working slider or the magnet slider provided in the power supply device is not in the rest position by a permanent magnet. It is impossible to make a circuit in a non-conductive position. This has been described in document EP 0 573 471 .

If the contact element is cast into the elastic wall or installed in it liquid-tight, a very safe connection can be produced, even if such a connection is arranged in a liquid or aggressive medium or in a rather aggressive environment such as In the paint shop, there are no breakdowns. Of course, this liquid-tight mounting of the two devices is required. This means that if only one of the two devices is provided with an elastic wall, the corresponding wall of the other device is made liquid-tight in the housing wall in which the contact element is located.

Description of drawings

Other advantages of the present invention can be obtained from the remaining technical solutions and the embodiments described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

These drawings represent:

Fig. 1 is the magnified section cut along the section line I-I of Fig. 2 through electromechanical connecting device of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the power supply device or data supply device of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a top view of a power supply device or a data supply device of three contact elements mechanically connected to an electromagnet;

FIG. 4 corresponds in principle to the embodiment of FIG. 1 , but additionally has a working slide.

Detailed ways

1 and 2 show a power supply or data supply device 1 with a housing 1a, in which four contact elements 2 formed as surface contacts are arranged, in order to produce a connection device from the power supply to the user, these contact elements It cooperates with a contact element 4 arranged in a housing 3 a of a subscriber access device or data access device 3 , which is likewise designed as a surface contact. The contact element 2 is designed at the same time as an actuating electromagnet or a magnetic actuating element, while the contact element 4 is simultaneously designed as an actuating electromagnet or a magnetic actuating element. The contact elements 2 of the power supply or data supply device 1 are each connected via lines 5 to a current source, a voltage source or a pulse source (not shown). The contact elements 4 of the subscriber switching device or the data retrieval device 3 are also connected in a similar manner to a not-shown subscriber in each case via wires. If the contact element 4 is arranged directly at the customer or at the current, voltage or pulse withdrawal point, it is also possible to dispense with connecting lines. In principle, the user switch-on device or data access device 3 has the same structure as the power supply device or data supply device 1, so the same elements still bear the same reference numbers (with the exception of contact elements 2 and 4).

As can be seen in the enlarged view of FIG. 1 , the front side 7 of the contact element 2 is flat and at least approximately flush with the surface of the housing 1 a facing the user access device 3 . In this case the contact element 2 is cast into a resilient wall 8 of the housing (likewise flush with its surface). The elastic wall 8 can be made of different materials. In a simple manner, the wall is a soft plastic, such as a membrane. The wall 8 surrounds the contact element 2 in a fluid-tight manner at least in the region of the front side, or the contact element 2 is embedded in the wall in a fluid-tight manner and only its front side 7 is exposed.

The contact element 2 embedded or cast in the elastic wall 8 can then be completely flat, ie without convexity, when the contact element 2 is simultaneously actuated by magnetic force. With mechanically guided flat contacts, a reliable fit of the contact surfaces can never be guaranteed. For this reason, flat contacts of the prior art are generally made convex on at least one of the two contact surfaces, so that a point contact is forced to be used.

The magnetic energy-activated contact surface proposed by the present invention can make the entire area of the contact elements 2 flat and can be stacked together with precise centers. The prerequisite for this is that the elastic wall 8 according to the invention allows a correspondingly free movement in the axial and radial directions. Of course, the elastic wall 8 does not have to completely surround the contact element as shown in FIG. 1 . If desired, it is also possible for the elastic wall 8 to form a film in the surface area and thereby expose the contact element at the rear, so that the contact element can be moved more easily, because in particular the rear of the contact element should be able to move in all directions, In order to achieve surface contact over the entire front side 7 of the contact element 2 .

In order to avoid an impermissible temperature rise due to too small a contact surface, such surface contact is advantageous for the transmission of high power values, in particular high currents.

Furthermore, point contact means limited sound quality when delivering sound in the low and high hertz ranges. At this frequency, there is a large current passing, especially when the sound is transmitted, there is a high wattage current passing, and a fairly reliable contact is required. These requirements can be fulfilled with the contact element 2 according to the invention, the adaptation of which to the relevant requirements in terms of dimensions and production is not a problem.

In order to securely fix the contact elements 2 in the elastic wall 8 , the contact elements 2 can be provided with extensions in their peripheral walls, for example with a flange 9 in each case. In the same way, the elastic wall 8 can also have one or more enlarged diameter portions 10 which are also annular, so that the entire unit can be securely installed in the housing 1a.

For example, the contact element 2 can additionally be provided with a stroke limiting device, which can be formed, for example, by a constriction or recess 11 of the contact element 2 in which a stop element such as a ring or plate 12 is located with play. This plate or ring 12 is fixedly connected to the housing 1 a and/or fixed by the wall 8 .

The subscriber switching device or data access device 3 is basically constructed in the same way as the power supply device or data supply device 1 . For this reason, identically acting elements are provided with the same reference symbols (up to the contact element 4).

Now if the user connection device or the data access device 3 are aligned on the power supply device or the data supply device 1, that is, the contact element 4 of the user connection device or the data access device 3 and the contact element 4 of the power supply device or the data supply device 1 If the contact elements 2 are aligned, the contact elements 2 "arch" outwards or towards the user access device or data access device 3 due to the elastic wall 8 and the contact elements 4 in the elastic wall also "arch" oppositely, and thus In this way a perfect surface contact is achieved for all contact elements over the entire area of their front side 7 .

Since the plate 12 is seated with some play in the recess 11 for the contact elements 2 and 4 moving towards each other, this plate or ring 12 acts as a travel limiter with the rear wall. In this case, therefore, the contact element 2 or 4 is respectively attached to the rear wall of the plate 12 . In general, a travel of, for example, 0.1 to 0.5 mm achieves fairly reliable surface contact. This means that the gap between the plate 12 and the recess 11 of the contact elements 2 and 4 is generally sufficient within this order of magnitude. The advantage of this configuration is that the membrane does not deform unnecessarily when the contact element is pulled out or when it is pressed from the front with excessive force.

If necessary, in order to obtain as perfect a contact as possible even with a large number of contact elements 2 and 4, in a simple design, the contact element 4 of the user switching device or the data access device 3 can also be located on the In a fixed wall, the aforementioned elastic wall 8 is not used at this time, but the wall 8 described in conjunction with FIG. 2 is used.

As shown in the figure, in this way it is possible to produce connection arrangements with any desired number of poles or contact elements, each with perfect contact. It is used, for example, by robots in the automotive industry when exchanging spray heads and simultaneously transferring data. Especially in the aggressive environment of the paint shop, this surface contact element of the present invention has a particularly great advantage compared with the socket connection of the prior art, because in this environment, the socket connection is difficult to clean and the parts are often damaged and damaged. Therefore it cannot be used.

Other areas of use are, for example, trailer couplings in motor vehicles (such couplings are generally 13-pole) and the interconnection of computer components and their peripherals, eg in a USB data bus system.

Another area of use is, for example, shipbuilding where erosion by water, especially seawater, is a problem.

If it is to be avoided that the current is permanently held at the contact element 2 of the power supply or data supply device 1, it is only necessary to arrange a working slide between the contact element 2 and the conductor connection. Such a working slide or magnet slide is described in document EP 0 573 471.

To produce a magnetic connection, for example, the contact element 2 of the power supply or data supply device 1 is formed as a magnet and the contact element 4 of the user connection device or data access device can be made of a magnetic material such as iron. However, the opposite configuration is also possible.

When only magnet elements are used, the magnet elements are arranged in such a way that the contact elements of the power supply device or data supply device 1 and the user connection device or data access device 3 are respectively assigned with different polarities. Also in the case of the electromechanical connection devices described in document EP 0 573 471 or DE 195 12 334 C1, correspondingly "coded" magnets 2 and 4 can be used as contact elements in order to keep the different contact elements 2 and 4 in exact mutual correspondence.

A very space-saving arrangement of the contact elements is shown in FIG. 3 .

The difference from FIGS. 1 and 2 is that in this case the contact elements 2 and 4 are each at the same time an actuating or triggering electromagnet or corresponding magnetic elements which are separated by the corresponding electromagnet. In FIG. 3 a power supply or data supply device 1' with three operating electromagnets 2' is shown. Each operating electromagnet 2' is mechanically fixedly connected to a contact element 20, also in surface contact, via three non-conductive ribs 14 evenly distributed on the circumference. All three operating electromagnets 2' are embedded together with their contact elements 20 connected by ribs 14 in the elastic wall 8'. When snapping on a user switching device or data access device 3' formed with this mirror image, the three contact elements 20 of each magnet are in surface contact with the contact elements of the other device due to the elasticity of the wall 8', respectively, Because such a surface contact can be realized very well with three elements that are to be connected to each other.

Of course, the three parallel trigger electromagnets 2' in Fig. 3 are just an example. With a corresponding enlargement or lengthening of the housing, any desired number of contact elements 20 can be accommodated in a very narrow space. Of course, in this case the device could also be circular.

It can also be seen from FIG. 1 that the elastic wall 8 has an outward projection 15 on its outer periphery in the region of its front side 7 . A liquid-tight connection is even more ensured by this construction.

The same structure also applies to the elastic walls of the user access device or data access device 3 .

If you want to set many contact elements in a very narrow space in order to achieve a connection device with many poles, then the diameter of the contact element 2 or 4 becomes very small, in order to add one or two devices, that is, power supply or data The magnetic force of the supply device 1 and/or the user's access device or the data access device 3 can be provided with a strengthening electromagnet 16 (seeing the dotted line shown in Figure 1, including the A corresponding enlargement housing 1 a ), likewise indicated by dotted lines, is used to additionally accommodate the electromagnet 16 . In the case that these two devices are connected to each other, the strengthening electromagnet 16 increases the magnetic force accordingly and pushes the contact element 2 or 4 forwards onto the corresponding other device from behind, so that it is easier for the elastic wall 8 to protrude or Arch forward and thus create a more reliable surface contact connection.

The power supply or data supply device 1 can be mounted with its housing 1 a in any device, rack, wall or other device 17 . The same applies to the subscriber switching device or the data access device 3 .

FIG. 4 shows another embodiment, which is constructed substantially in the same manner as the embodiment of FIG. 1. FIG. For this reason, the same reference numbers continue to be used for identical parts.

The difference from the embodiment in FIG. 1 is that, inside the housing 1 a, the power supply device or data supply device 1 is equipped with a working slider 21 . As previously mentioned, the principle of action of the working slide 21 has been described in EP 0 573 471, so it will only be briefly mentioned below.

As shown, in this case the electromagnets 2 and 4 and the contact elements are arranged spaced apart from each other, and the contact elements of the power supply device or data supply device 1 are designated with a new reference numeral "20'", while the user interface The contact elements of the communication device or the data access device 3 are represented by "4'". The electromagnet 2 and the conductor connection 5 are connected to or arranged on the working slide 21 . The working slide 21 is held in the rest position by a holding electromagnet 22 . The holding electromagnet 22 can be made into a ring and arranged above the user connection device or the data access device 3 of the working slider 21 in the housing 1a. Of course, instead of holding the electromagnet 22, another element can be used, which is ferromagnetic and attracts the working slider 21 with the electromagnet 2 arranged thereon.

As shown, in this way no current-carrying connection has yet been established between the conductor connection 5 and the contact element 20'. Only when loading on the user's connection device or the data access device 3, because the mutual attraction of the electromagnets 2 and 4 overcomes the holding force of the holding electromagnet 22, the working slider 21 is lifted from its rest position, and Contact is made between the conductor connection 5 and the contact element 20 ′, so that an electrical current is passed to the contact element 4 ′ of the subscriber switching device or the data access device 3 . For this reason, can certainly choose to keep the magnetic force between electromagnet 22 and electromagnet 2 like this: Because the magnetic force of electromagnet 4 is stronger, under the situation that considers it, electromagnet 2 and 4 do not protrude to the surface respectively, but Slightly set back or buried (electromagnet 4 and electromagnet 2 in elastic wall 8 under cover). When the user switching device or the data access device 3 is removed, the operating slide 21 with the electromagnet 2 is again attracted by the holding electromagnet 22, so that the operating slide 21 returns to its rest position again. The freely accessible contact element 20' is thus without current when the user switching device or the data access device 3 is removed.

The device according to the invention can also be used in a very advantageous manner for the transmission of electric currents and signals of mobile telephones which are arranged in motor vehicles, for example via an intercom system. In this case many contacts are required. For the transmission of high-frequency signals, the power supply device or data supply device 1 and the user connection device or data access device 3 can be equipped with connection points for transmitting high-frequency signals. Transmission of high-frequency signals generally must be shielded and coaxial cables must be used.

If many contact elements 4' must be placed due to space reasons, then it is necessary to electrically shield the electromagnet 4 by the insulating interlayer 23 so that no short circuit occurs. In order to fix the electromagnets 4 in the elastic wall 8, these electromagnets can each be provided with projections 24. Electromagnet 2 is fixed on the work slide block 21 similar to this. Another solution is to provide an annular groove 25 into which the material of the operating slide 21 protrudes.

On the rear side of the contact element 4' or in the transition area to the conductor connection 6, there is an extension 26 in order to achieve a similar function to that of the recess 11 in FIG. As shown, there is a gap between the extension 26 and the rear wall of the housing 3a, and the elastic wall 8 can only bulge the gap outward due to the magnetic force.

In FIG. 2 , the two installation positions of such contacts of the power supply or data provider 1 are indicated, for example, by the centrally arranged coaxial dashed circle “ 27 ” and the circumferentially arranged dashed circle “ 28 ”. According to the arrangement of the contacts 27 or 28, corresponding contacts or corresponding connectors (not shown in the figure) are correspondingly provided in the user connection device or the data retrieval device 3 .

Claims (15)

1. An electromechanical connection device having the following characteristics: a) a power supply or data supply device which can be connected via a current contact to a current or pulse transmission source, b) the power supply or data supply device is arranged in a housing and has operating electromagnets or magnetic operating elements and contact elements, c) a subscriber connection device or data access device arranged in an enclosure electrically connectable to the subscriber, d) the subscriber switching device or data access device has a trigger electromagnet or a magnetic trigger element and a contact element, e) The connection of the power supply device or data supply device to the user connection device or data access device may have a surface contact formed as a planar contact between the power supply device or data supply device and the user connection device or data access device. Establish current, pulse or data transmission between the contact elements, It is characterized by, The contact element (2 or 4) of at least one of the power supply device or data supply device (1), user connection device or data access device (3)) is arranged in at least one part of the corresponding housing (1a, 3a) In the elastic wall (8). 2. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The contact element ( 2 or 4 ) is at least approximately flush with the partially elastic wall ( 8 ) on its front side. 3. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1 or 2, It is characterized by, The operating electromagnet or magnetic operating element (2) and the triggering electromagnet or magnetic triggering element (4) of the power supply device or data supply device (1) and/or user switching device or data access device (3) simultaneously constitute a contact element . 4. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The operating electromagnet (2) in the power supply device or data supply device (1) and the trigger electromagnet (4) in the user switching device or data access device (3) correspond in a certain preselected pole configuration such that, That is, in the switched-on state, one north pole is always aligned with the opposite south pole. 5. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 4, It is characterized by, Each electromagnet is itself coded in such a way that it has a number of small magnetic particles of different polarity which, in the switched-on state, are always aligned with the opposite polarity magnetic particles of the other device. 6. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The contact element (2) is injected or embedded in a liquid-tight manner in the at least partially elastic wall (8). 7. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The at least partially elastic wall (8) is made of a plastic film. 8. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The contact element (2) arranged in the at least partially elastic wall (8) is provided with a stroke limiting device (11, 12). 9. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 8, It is characterized by, The contact element (2 or 4) is provided with one or more recesses (11) on the circumference, which cooperate with at least one stop (12) on the housing (1) or an element connected to the housing (1a or 3a) effect. 10. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The at least partially elastic wall (8) bulges outwards at its periphery to form a sealing ring (15). 11. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The power supply device or data supply device (1) and/or the user connection device or data access device (3) is equipped with a reinforcing electromagnet (16), which is always positioned at the operating electromagnet or magnetic operating element (2 ) or the trigger electromagnet or the magnetic trigger element (4), wherein the size or diameter of the strengthening electromagnet (16) is equivalent to that of the operating electromagnet or the magnetic operating element (2) or the trigger electromagnet or the magnetic trigger element (4) several times. 12. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, Three contact elements (20) are mechanically fixedly connected to each operating electromagnet or magnetic operating element (2) and/or each triggering electromagnet or magnetic triggering element (4). 13. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 1, It is characterized by, The power supply or data supply device (1) is equipped with a connection point (27, 28) for transmitting high-frequency signals, which can be connected to a high Frequency contact connection. 14. Electromechanical according to claim 1 connecting device, It is characterized by, The power supply device or data supply device (1) is equipped with an operating slider (21) that can move in the direction of the user's switching device or data access device (3), wherein contact is made through this operating slider (21) The connection between the element (2) and the conductor connection (5), that is to say, only enables current or data transmission when a customer switching device or a data access device (3) is installed. 15. The electromechanical connection device according to claim 14, It is characterized by, A holding electromagnet or an element ( 22 ) made of ferromagnetic material is arranged on the side of the working slide ( 21 ) facing away from the user switching device or the data access device ( 3 ).

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